Black Ensemble Theater Company is a theatre company that performs at the Black Ensemble Cultural Center in the Uptowncommunity area of Chicago, Illinois. The company is known for productions related to African-American culture, especially musicals depicting notable African-American musicians and performers.[1] The company is a significant contributor to Chicago's emergence as a Theater Town,[2] and its theater has been selected as one of the 25 top major theaters in the country by the Encyclopædia Britannica Almanac.[3]
The company performed in the Black Ensemble Theater at 4520 North Beacon Street until it opened a new state of the art 50,000-square-foot (4,600m2) Black Ensemble Cultural Center at 4450 N. Clark Street, on November 18, 2011.[4][5] The company raised 20M dollar to build the new theater which is also in Uptown. The new Black Ensemble Theater Cultural Center was designed by Morris Architects Planners, who has previously designed Steppenwolf, Lookingglass, and Playhouse on the Square.[6] The new theater is being located in a former warehouse that cost US$3.5 million to purchase and many times more than that to renovate.[7] Approximately $20 million is being raised to fund the construction of the new theater.[6][8]
Among the recent productions are musicals celebrating Curtis Mayfield, Marvin Gaye, Jackie Wilson, Billie Holiday, Dionne Warwick, Teddy Pendergrass and Stax Records.[9] The production I Am Who I Am (The Story of Teddy Pendergrass) that opened on March 15, 2008, was extended through the end of 2008.[10] The company has a history of presenting as many as a half-dozen productions a year since opening in 1976.[11] The theater's productions have been critically recognized.[12] Some have had lengthy multiple-year runs and national tours such as The Jackie Wilson Story,[13] which was the first traveling production of the Black Ensemble Touring Venture and which played for four weeks at the Apollo Theater.[14] The theater company has also traveled nationally to perform to festivals.[15]
The group's more than one hundred performances have been produced by its founder, Jackie Taylor, since 1976.[14] When producing musical biographies, Taylor uses a formula of including at least eighteen of the artist's hits, some high points and low points in the artist's career, at least one climactic moment of chaos and an uplifting ending, which is the most important element.[13]
↑ Malik, Farrah & Beth Silverman (July 7, 2008). "DUE TO POPULAR DEMAND CHICAGO'S BLACK ENSEMBLE THEATER COMPANY ANNOUNCES THE EXTENSION OF I AM WHO I AM (THE STORY OF TEDDY PENDERGRASS)" (Press release).
Theodore DeReese Pendergrass was an American singer. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he initially rose to musical fame as the lead singer of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes. After leaving the group over in 1976, Pendergrass launched a successful solo career under the Philadelphia International label, releasing five consecutive platinum albums. Pendergrass's career was suspended after a March 1982 car crash left him paralyzed from the shoulders down. Pendergrass continued his successful solo career until announcing his retirement in 2007. Pendergrass died from respiratory failure in January 2010.
The Annoyance Theatre, or Annoyance Productions as it is sometimes called, is a theatre and associated ensemble based in Chicago, Illinois, that deals mainly in absurd and outrageous humor. Many people who have performed with the ensemble have gone on to become successful stage and screen actors. Popular productions have included Co-Ed Prison Sluts and That Darned Antichrist. Annoyance Productions currently runs classes in improvisation, writing, musical improvisation, acting, and solo work.
Uptown is one of Chicago, Illinois’ 77 community areas. Uptown's boundaries are Foster Avenue on the north; Lake Michigan on the east; Montrose, and Irving Park on the south; Ravenswood, and Clark on the west. To the north is Edgewater, to the west is Lincoln Square, and to the south is Lake View.
The Chitlin' Circuit was a collection of performance venues throughout the eastern, southern, and upper Midwest areas of the United States that provided commercial and cultural acceptance for African American musicians, comedians, and other entertainers during the era of racial segregation in the United States.
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Uptown Theatre is a currently closed movie palace and concert venue located in the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. Designed by Rapp and Rapp and built by Paschen Bros. contractors, it is one of the many movie palaces built by the Balaban & Katz theatre chain run by A. J. Balaban, his brother Barney Balaban, and their partner Sam Katz.
Rhonda LaChanze Sapp, known professionally as LaChanze is an American actress, singer, and dancer. She won the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical in 2006 for her role in The Color Purple.
Clarence Alexander Avant is an American music executive, entrepreneur, and film producer, who also goes by the name of "The Black Godfather".
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Luna Negra Dance Theater was a dance ensemble that celebrated the richness and diversity of Latino culture through the creation of works by contemporary Latino choreographers. Founded by Cuban-born dancer and choreographer Eduardo Vilaro, the company steered away from folkloric representations and utilized a variety of dance form styles such as Flamenco, Tango or Salsa with contemporary dance movement.
Rashid Johnson is an American artist who produces conceptual post-black art. Johnson first received critical attention when examples of his work were included in the exhibition "Freestyle," curated by Thelma Golden at the Studio Museum in Harlem in 2001. He studied at Columbia College Chicago and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and his work has been exhibited around the world.
American Blues Theater is an American theater.
Newark Symphony Hall is a performing arts center located at 1020 Broad Street in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey. Built in 1925, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. It was known for many years as The Mosque Theater, and is the former home of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, New Jersey State Opera and the New Jersey Ballet Company.
Chicago Dance Crash is an American hip hop/contemporary dance company based in Chicago, Illinois. The company tours year round while sustaining a calendar year ‘season’ of local premiers and commercial work as well as a spring/fall educational outreach program. The company has received widespread critical acclaim while being considered one of the most notable American dance companies to emerge during the first decade of the 2000s.
Christopher Neal Jackson is an American actor, singer, musician, and composer. He began his career in 1995 starring in the Off-Broadway musical Time and the Wind by composer Galt MacDermot at the age of 20. He made his Broadway debut in 1997 as an ensemble member in the original Broadway cast of Disney's The Lion King. He remained with the show for several years, ultimately taking over the role of Simba. He went on to perform leading roles in several more Broadway musicals and plays, including After Midnight, Bronx Bombers, Holler If Ya Hear Me, and Memphis. He drew critical acclaim in several projects with Lin-Manuel Miranda: originating the roles of Benny in In the Heights and George Washington in the smash hit Hamilton. For the latter role he was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical. He also collaborated with Miranda on the Disney film Moana in which he provides the singing voice of Chief Tui. His other film work includes secondary roles in After.Life and Tracers.
Jackie Taylor is an American actress, director and theater producer. She is the founder and CEO of the Black Ensemble Theater in Chicago. She has acted in several films beginning with Cooley High (1975), as well as on television and stage. Among other honors, Taylor has been given the lifetime achievement award by the League of Chicago Theaters, and Actors' Equity's Rosetta LeNoire Award for "outstanding artistic contributions to the universality of the human experience in American Theater".
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